Straw-spreader.



J. H. MOTT.

sTRAw SPREADER.

APPLICATION FILED DEO. 13, 1911v Patented Aug. 27, 1912.

2 SHBETS-SHEBT 1.

. J. H. MOTT.

STRAW SPREADER. APPL'IGATION FILED DEU. 1a, 1911.

Patented Aug. 27, 1912 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

1t er crier@ -N JAMES I-I. MOIT, OF EMMETT TOWNSHIP, CALHOUN COUNTY, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNGIE T0 SIMPLEX. SPREADEB, MANU'FACTUNINGv COMPANY', OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI.

STRAIV-SPREADER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application flied December 13, 19411. serial NQ. eeasee.

`Spreaders, of which the following isa speci ication.

' This invention relates to, straw spreaders and more especially to straw spreading attachments'for wagons or otherwheeled `vehicles, and my object is to produce an attachment of this character which will per form its proper function efficiently and which can be easily and quickly'secured in or removed from operative position.

To this end the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar features of construction and organization` as hereinafter described and claimed, and in order that it g may be fully understood reference is to 'be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Y Figure 1,- is a -side View of a'portion of a wagon equipped with a straw spreading attachment embodying my invention. Fig. 2, is a fragmentary rear view of the construction shown by Fig. 1. Fig. 3, is a plan view. Fig. 4, is a plan view of a modified form of the straw spreading attachment.

In the said drawings, 1 is a frame con' st-ructed as follows: 2 is a pair of parallel cross bars connected by a plurality of longitudinally extending bars 3, which project a considerable distance beyond the foremost cross bar 2, and the bars are so proportioned 'that the front cross bar 2 may bear against the rear end of the bottom of the wagon W, or other vehicle,'and the bars 3 extend into the wagon body and rest upon the bot-tom `thereof with the outermost bars 3 preferably engaging the sides of the wagon body. To secure the frame rigidly in posit-ion, the forwardly extending portions of the bars 3, are bolted at 4 to the bottom of the wagon. 5 is a pair of blocks secured upon the outermost bars 3, and connecting said blocks is a cross bar 6. Connecting the bars 2 inward of the planes of the blocks 5, is a pair of bars 7 forming journals for the lower ends of a pair of vert-ical shafts 8 'also journaled in cross bar 6. Each shaft 8 is provided with one or -more radial arms 9, and eacharm 9 is equipped at its end with a horizontally arranged fork 10, the same loeing preferably made of wire. The shafts are provided near their lower ends with bevel gears 11, meshing with larger gears 12 secured on a transverse shaft 13 ournaled iin bearings 14, depending from theoutermost bars 3 centrally between cross bars 2.

15 is a clutch member arranged to slide in any suitable .manner to the hand lever 16 withdrawn from engagement with the companion clutch 17, the latter being in the form of a sprocket wheel 18 journaled on the outer end of shaft 13. lpreferably employed for holding the slidable clutch member 15 in engagement with the journaled clutch member 17. To impart rotation to the shaft when the clutch members are in engagement, the sprocket wheel 18 is connected by a sprocket chain 20 with a sprocket wheel 21 secured to the inner side of one of the wheels of the wagon IV.

In practice, a wagon loaded with straw and equipped with my attachment at the -re'ar end, is driven over the field upon which the straw is to be distributed and through the -gearing described, the vertical shafts 8 are operated in the direction indicated by the adjacent arrows,.Fig. 3. Any suitstraw from the wagon within the range of a man will perform this function with a pitchfork. The straw will be carried rearwardly between the rapidly rotating forks and thrown for a considerable distance rearwardly thereby, of course being distributed over a stretch of ground of comparatively yhave to traverse the field but few times in performing its spreading fui'iction.

In Fig. '1, a construction is shown which. corresponds in principle to that shown in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive. In said ligure only one of the distributing shafts with its arms and forks is shown, the other being replaced by a guide 22, which guide nay be a solid plate of substantially the same height as shaft 8, or it may be a skeleton guide, any type being satisfactory which will hold the mass of straw within the range of movement of the forks. In this .oonstruction the action vwill be practically the same as in the construction where the two coperating sets of forks 4are employed,

upon and rotate with shaft 13, and connected y fulcrumed on frame 1, so that it may be' able means may be employed to feed the movement of the forks, though/ ordinarily great width in order thatptlie wagon will.

rateatea aeg-.27, 1ere.,

A spring .19 is "but the straw will not be spread over asv Wide a path; andfor this reason it will be necessary'for the Wagon equipped with the construction shown in Fig. 4 to traverse a field a greater number of times than would be necessary with the attachment shown in Figs. l and 8. When traveling to and from the field, it isdesirable, that the forksr shall remain stationary and for this reason a spring catch 23 projects from frame' 1y for engagement by the lever when swung yin-` War' to disengage the clutch 4members. j

From the above description it will beY apparent Vthat- I Vhave produced` astrattiV spreader embodying the featuresg"enumerfL ated as desirable in the statementofthe lobjectpof the inventiongkand I AWish'itjtobe" understood that While I haveillustrated', and y( described the prefered embodimentof'the inventionV Idd/not desire to be restricted;

to thelje'xactfdetails of construction shown "andi,described as obvious'` modicaiionsr v'villY suggest themselves to! one 'slilled inthe art;r 'Ieiaimyf Y of a frame consisting of a plurality of transverse bars, one fitting against the rear end of thevehicle body, and a plurality of longitudinally extending bars rvconnecting said transverseibars and .exten'dirjigy for- Wardly into and resting onv the bottom of the vehicle body`,; means forisecuring said longitudinal bars Vtothe bottom of the vehicle'body, a transverse shaft suitably journaled between saidztransverse bars, gearing Vof the vehicle, means to throw the shaft into `or out of gear.with said vehicle `Wheel, a Vpair of vertical shafts suitably journaled, bevel gear Wheels connecting said shafts iwiththe rstfn'amed shaft,l and arms se- Vcured tothe verticalv shafts and forks sevcuredto the 'outer ends of said arms.

In testimony whereof I- aiiix my signature Vin vthe' vpresence Aofftwo Witnesses. f

n" JAMES H. MOTT.

Witnessesr n Y C. Roncnlzs,

cdiiiesio-thsjpatentmay b'l'obtaiuedifr iiiecentsteach," ny-addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

\ Washington, DfCP connecting ysaid shaft with one ofthe Wheelsv 

